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Instead of creating a Wi-Fi hotspot that any device can connect to, iRinger lets you share your Internet connection through an ad hoc network-provided you're able to follow the 15-step list of instructions.įirst, you have to set up an ad hoc network on your Windows or Mac computer. Using iRinger is not nearly as convenient as the iPhone's built-in tethering system. Now, I never would have dreamed of using the app's hidden tethering capability while I was still on an unlimited data plan, because that would have violated Verizon's tethering policy. I bought iRinger for $2 sometime before Apple threw it down the memory hole.

Once Apple discovers the app's true functionality, it gets kicked off the App Store. That happened a few months ago with " iRinger," a calendar application that becomes a tethering app when you create an event titled Tethering123: Occasionally, an app developer creates what looks like a very basic piece of software-a drawing application or a calendar tool-but which actually allows users to share their phone's Internet connection with other devices. The second option was to find an app with hidden tethering capabilities. Waiting for reliable jailbreaks of each new version of iOS can certainly be a pain, but jailbroken phones can use apps like TetherMe without paying an extra fee each month.

The easiest way for me to tether would be to jailbreak my phone, which I had done with my iPhone 4 before giving up the jailbreak in order to get a newer version of iOS. That's not the case with iOS, of course, and Apple has steadfastly refused to accept tethering apps into its official store.
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And even if specific apps aren't available on the Google Play store, Android lets users sideload applications without rooting or jailbreaking. If I were still using Android, I could tether with something like PdaNet. Enabling tethering would add at least $20 to my bill each month, which I hoped to avoid. The iPhone has a native tethering tool, but it's not visible to the user unless the carrier enables it. To my total non-surprise, that didn't work because I don't pay for one of Verizon's "Share Everything" plans. Still, I called Verizon to see if the company would add tethering to my plan without an extra fee. Instead, Verizon just can't object to third-party tethering applications. Verizon doesn't actually have to enable tethering to comply with the FCC order, which stems from Verizon purchasing spectrum licenses that forbid application blocking. Now that my data plan limits me to 2GB per month, though, I get to tether without paying Verizon extra, right? Not quite.
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Attempting to upgrade my phone on Verizon's website would have forced me to pay at least $100 a month. Interestingly, I was only able to keep this more favorable pricing by purchasing my phone through Apple's online store. I'm still paying $75 a month (plus $5 or so in taxes and surcharges) for 450 voice minutes, 250 texts, and 2GB of data. The time finally came when Apple unveiled the iPhone 5S, which has now replaced my trusty old iPhone 4, which itself replaced my first smartphone, a Motorola Droid.Īlthough I had to give up my grandfathered unlimited data in order to get a subsidized iPhone 5S, I didn't have to give up my grandfathered pricing. I've had an unlimited data plan for years but knew I might give that up to get my next phone at the subsidized rate and save $450. I did a little fist pump when I heard the news. Verizon could still require extra payments for tethering from customers with grandfathered unlimited data plans, but the FCC said that consumers with capped plans should be able to use their limited data however they like. Last year, the Federal Communications Commission told Verizon Wireless that it had to stop blocking applications that let cellular customers use their phones as mobile hotspots.
